Several senior Catholic leaders in Spain have strongly criticized the euthanasia of 25-year-old Noelia Castillo, calling it a reflection of societal failure and raising concerns about the country’s right-to-die law.“We have all failed as a society,” Euronews quoted Jose Mazuelos Pérez, Bishop of the Canary Islands, as saying.
“Culture of Death”: Bishops question the euthanasia law
Criticizing Spain’s euthanasia law passed in 2021, Mazuelos Pérez said it represented “another step towards a culture of death.” He said: “There is a desire to ask the doctor to end Noelia’s life, when the doctor’s mission is to treat, and if he cannot treat, he accompanies him and comforts him.”Raising similar concerns, Luis Argüello, president of the Spanish Bishops’ Conference, said: “A doctor cannot act as an executioner, no matter how lawful, empowering or compassionate he may appear.”
In a joint statement, church leaders said the case reflects “an accumulation of personal suffering and institutional shortcomings.”
A long legal battle before euthanasia
Castillo died in Barcelona on Thursday after an 18-month legal battle to exercise her right to assisted dying.Her application, which was approved in 2024 by a Catalan medical and legal commission, has been repeatedly challenged by her father, Jerónimo Castillo, with the support of the advocacy group Abujados Cristianos.
Ultimately, the courts, including the Spanish Constitutional Court and then the European Court of Human Rights, ruled in her favour, allowing the proceedings to go ahead.
A life shaped by trauma and suffering
Castillo’s life was marked by years of psychological and physical distress. She had been undergoing psychotherapy since her teens and was diagnosed with conditions including obsessive-compulsive disorder and borderline personality disorder.She was sexually assaulted multiple times, including a gang rape by three men in 2022. The trauma led to repeated suicide attempts.In October of that year, she jumped from a fifth-floor window, suffering a serious spinal injury that left her paralyzed from the waist down and in constant pain.
“I want to go in peace”
In her recent interviews with Spanish broadcaster Antena 3 and the program Y Ahora Sonsoles, Castillo spoke frankly about her decision.“I want to go now and stop suffering,” she said.“No one in my family supports euthanasia. But what about all the pain I’ve been through all these years?”Despite her father’s opposition, she remained firm in her choice.While her father fought to prevent the measure, arguing that her mental health affected her judgement, her mother expressed her disapproval but chose to support her.“I don’t agree with it, but I will always be there for her,” her mother said.The case has sparked a wider debate in Spain about euthanasia, mental health, and whether the system has failed to provide adequate support to the vulnerable individual.
